Erich
the old Sage
the a/c were given to other field units and the pilots dispersed to other Geschwadern.
The Best Fw-190 Variant...?
- Thread starter cheddar cheese
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Okay that is what I figured.
CharlesBronson
Senior Master Sergeant
Tough bastard: 
Chief mechanic Unteroffizier Rommer inspect "his" FW-190A-4 wich returned from ops in Severkaya in mid- 1943, with 2 cilinders heads shot away in the radial BMW engine.
despite the cronic damage to the powerplant, the pilot returned safely and make a perfect " three point landing".
Chief mechanic Unteroffizier Rommer inspect "his" FW-190A-4 wich returned from ops in Severkaya in mid- 1943, with 2 cilinders heads shot away in the radial BMW engine.
despite the cronic damage to the powerplant, the pilot returned safely and make a perfect " three point landing".
Good plane, well taken care of. I have always learned if you take care of her, she will come through for you when you really need it.
- Thread starter
- #325
cheddar cheese
Major General
Nice pic! 8)
I have always liked pics of the ground crews working on there aircraft. It shows a different side of what goes on behind the scenes. The poeple who keep them up in the air.
CharlesBronson
Senior Master Sergeant
Operations of FW-190s from JG-26 in D-Day:
by Don Caldwell
The Geschwader was far below its authorized strength in aircraft and pilots, but was in its best shape in months. Obstlt. Priller's Geschwaderstab and the First and Second Gruppen were equipped almost entirely with the Fw 190A-8. An improved Fw 190A-7, it would become the Fw 190 model built in the greatest numbers, 1334 eventually rolling off the production lines. The Fw 190A-8 retained the A-7's powerful armament of four wing-mounted MG 151s and two cowling-mounted MG 131s, although some examples had the outer wing cannon removed to save weight. It had a new radio with homing capabilities and a new 25 gallon fuel tank behind the cockpit. In the R4 variant this fuel tank was replaced by a nitrous oxide tank in a system called GM-1 boost, which increased top speed by as much as 36 mph at altitudes above 8000 meters (26,000 feet). The Fw 190A-8 had the same 1700 HP BMW 801D-2 engine that had powered the Fw 190A-3 in 1942, so the boost was necessary to remain competitive with improved Allied fighters. GM-1 raised the fighter's critical altitude from 5500 to 6300 meters (18,000 to 20,700 feet) at which height its maximum speed was 656 km/h (408 mph). At low or medium altitudes the performance of this fighter was comparable to that of the four principal Allied types, and its pilots, even the new ones, had a great deal of confidence in their mount.
......The Third Gruppe was still flying its old Bf 109G-6 Beulen (boils), so named from the bulbous fairings covering the breeches of their cowling-mounted MG 131 machine guns. While still an effective dogfighter, the Bf 109 was showing its age, and lacked the speed necessary to initiate combat or escape from Allied fighters. An experienced pilot could use its ability to climb and turn to regain the advantage if caught by surprise; inexperienced pilots, who were the great majority, were easy targets.
......As the Allies completed their preparations for the invasion, the Germans still had no clue as to its date or location. Rain and mists covering France in early June led to a reduction in the Wehrmacht state of readiness. The First Gruppe kept up its routine of flying from its northern bases to Trier or Metz in the morning, and returning in the evening. The Second Gruppe continued training at Mont de Marsan. The Third Gruppe remained on Nancy-Essey, and was scrambled a few times. Contact was not sought with the enemy.
......On 4 June the Allied air forces kept up a blizzard of attacks on tactical objectives in France. In England, the assault craft had been loaded and were on their way to the Normandy beaches when an urgent message from SHAEF was received postponing the D-Day landings one day, from 5 June to 6 June, to take advantage of a predicted improvement in the weather. The convoys put back into port, still unobserved by the Luftwaffe.
Jagdgeschwader 26 got word of the Normandy invasion via a telephone call to Obstlt. Priller at his Lille-Nord command post. Priller was told that JG 26 had been put under the command of the 5th Jagddivision, and that he should begin transferring his Gruppen to bases nearer to the beachhead area. Orders were quickly passed to the nearby First Gruppe and to the Third Gruppe at Nancy-Essey to get their operational fighters airborne and en route to the JG 2 airfields at Creil and Cormeilles. His staff was told to load their trucks and head south toward Poix. The First and Third Gruppe truck convoys were already on the road with those units' ground staffs, but were unfortunately headed in the wrong direction. The First was going to Reims in anticipation of a permanent base move; the Third was moving southeast to join its flying units at Nancy. Priller had fought the orders for these transfers into the French interior, but had lost. The convoys were located by radio and told to stop. Hptm. Naumann's Second Gruppe pilots had already taken off from Mont de Marsan and Biarritz at 0700 and had reached Vrox, where they awaited further orders. Beyond telling the Second Gruppe ground staff to pack up, Priller had no orders at the moment; the unexpected Allied landing site had upset all the Luftwaffe plans. Having done all he could, Priller and his wingman, Uffz. Heinz Wodarczyk, headed for their Focke-Wulfs, which as usual were parked just outside the command post. The first Luftwaffe response to the invasion was underway.
......The pair took off into the gray skies at 0800. Priller's only orders to Wodarczyk were to stick close. They headed west at low altitude, spotting Spitfires above them as far east as Abbeville. Near Le Havre the duo climbed into the solid cloud bank. When they emerged, the ships of the largest assault landing in history were spread before their eyes. After a shouted "Good luck!" to Wodarczyk, Priller dove for the beach at 650 kph (400 mph). The British soldiers on Sword, the easternmost of the five landing beaches, jumped for cover as the two fighters roared overhead at fifty feet, their machine guns and cannon clattering. The fleet's antiaircraft guns opened fire with every gun that could track them, but the Focke-Wulfs flew through the barrage unscathed. After traversing the beach, the two pilots climbed for the clouds, honor satisfied. Their D-Day mission, the most famous in the history of the Geschwader thanks to Cornelius Ryan's book The Longest Day and the resulting movie, was over.
......The two Focke-Wulfs landed on Creil, and Priller went to see Major Bühligen, the Kommodore of the Richthofen Geschwader. Bühligen had no more fighters than did Priller. Only one of his Gruppen was immediately available; another was en route from Brittany, and the third was in Germany for rebuilding, and had not yet been released to return to France. After several telephone calls to 5th Jagddivision headquarters, Priller got a decision on relocating his Geschwader. The Second Gruppe could continue north to Guyancourt, near Paris. The First and Third Gruppen could stay at Creil and Cormeilles until the arrival of the rest of the JG 2 aircraft made things too crowded, and would then move south to bases in the Paris region. Priller made arrangements for Bühligen's radiomen to contact his four road convoys, and returned to the business of fighting the Allies.
......Although Priller and Wodarczyk may have been the first German pilots to fly over the beachhead, they were by no means the only ones to contact the enemy on this day. Bühligen himself scored the first victory for JG 2, a P-47 over the Orne Estuary, at 1157. I/JG 2 was active over Caen from noon, and III/JG 2 joined in after it arrived at Cormeilles from Brittany. For the day, the Richthofen Geschwader claimed three P-47s, five P-51s, and nine Typhoons, for the loss of nine Fw 190s. The P-51s included an entire flight of four 4th Fighter Group aircraft, bounced while strafing a convoy near Rouen.
......After sitting on the ground at Creil and Cormeilles for three hours waiting to be serviced, the First Gruppe began flying small missions, some jointly with I/JG 2. Uffz. Hans-Werner Winter of the 3rd Staffel either got lost or was chased east by Allied fighters, and was shot down and killed by the Abbeville Flak. Fhr. Gerhard Schulwitz was missing for a day after being shot down by naval gunfire, but returned with slight injuries. Fhj.-Uffz. Friedrich Schneider of the 2nd Staffel was also hit by naval gunners, and belly-landed on Beaumont-le-Roger. By late afternoon, the JG 2 armorers had fit some of the Focke-Wulfs with launchers for 21 cm rockets, and Lt. Kemethmüller led his 4th Staffel in the first rocket attack by the Geschwader on land targets; they had been trained for this at Cazaux. The 2nd Staffel leader, Oblt. Kunz, scored the day's only air victory for the Geschwader, downing a Mustang southeast of Caen at 2055. This was probably a 4th Fighter Group P-51 that had aborted from a mission to Dreux with a bad magneto and was attempting to reach the Allied lines to force-land.
......The Third Gruppe had reached the JG 2 bases by 0930, but did not begin flying combat missions until nearly noon. It is known that they tangled with Spitfires, claimed no victories, and sustained no losses or damage. The fragile Messerschmitts probably stayed well away from the beachhead.
......The Second Gruppe lost one aircraft on its takeoff from Biarritz. Lt. Hans Bleich was caught in Lt. Glunz's propwash and crashed, suffering slight injuries. Those Focke-Wulfs that reached Vrox flew north in two separate formations. One flew directly to the new Second Gruppe base at Guyancourt, where they landed before 1115. They did not fly again this day, probably because there was no-one there to service the aircraft. Lt. Glunz led eight aircraft to Cormeilles. While en route, Glunz spotted a flight of P-51s attacking ground targets near Rouen and led a bounce. They were spotted, and the Mustangs broke into the attack. One pair boxed in Uffz. Erich Lindner and shot him down. He attempted to bail out, but caught his parachute on the cockpit framing; he pulled it loose in time and fell free, landing with only slight injuries. Glunz holed one Mustang's wing, but was unable to get an advantage, and both sides broke away. After servicing at Cormeilles, Glunz's group reached Guyancourt by 1700.
......The OKL in Berlin believed at first that the Normandy landings were only a diversion, and did not order the fighters in Germany westward until afternoon. The Bf 109s and Fw 190s began arriving at their assigned bases near nightfall, and none played any role in the day's operations. The effort by the 5th Jagddivision totaled 121 combat sorties, all by JG 2 and JG 26. Fliegerkorps II reported fifty-one sorties, all by SG 4. According to one source, the 8th Air Force and the Allied Expeditionary Air Force (AEAF) flew 14,000 combat sorties on 6 June; the American 56th Fighter Group flew an unprecedented eleven combat missions.
by Don Caldwell
The Geschwader was far below its authorized strength in aircraft and pilots, but was in its best shape in months. Obstlt. Priller's Geschwaderstab and the First and Second Gruppen were equipped almost entirely with the Fw 190A-8. An improved Fw 190A-7, it would become the Fw 190 model built in the greatest numbers, 1334 eventually rolling off the production lines. The Fw 190A-8 retained the A-7's powerful armament of four wing-mounted MG 151s and two cowling-mounted MG 131s, although some examples had the outer wing cannon removed to save weight. It had a new radio with homing capabilities and a new 25 gallon fuel tank behind the cockpit. In the R4 variant this fuel tank was replaced by a nitrous oxide tank in a system called GM-1 boost, which increased top speed by as much as 36 mph at altitudes above 8000 meters (26,000 feet). The Fw 190A-8 had the same 1700 HP BMW 801D-2 engine that had powered the Fw 190A-3 in 1942, so the boost was necessary to remain competitive with improved Allied fighters. GM-1 raised the fighter's critical altitude from 5500 to 6300 meters (18,000 to 20,700 feet) at which height its maximum speed was 656 km/h (408 mph). At low or medium altitudes the performance of this fighter was comparable to that of the four principal Allied types, and its pilots, even the new ones, had a great deal of confidence in their mount.
......The Third Gruppe was still flying its old Bf 109G-6 Beulen (boils), so named from the bulbous fairings covering the breeches of their cowling-mounted MG 131 machine guns. While still an effective dogfighter, the Bf 109 was showing its age, and lacked the speed necessary to initiate combat or escape from Allied fighters. An experienced pilot could use its ability to climb and turn to regain the advantage if caught by surprise; inexperienced pilots, who were the great majority, were easy targets.
......As the Allies completed their preparations for the invasion, the Germans still had no clue as to its date or location. Rain and mists covering France in early June led to a reduction in the Wehrmacht state of readiness. The First Gruppe kept up its routine of flying from its northern bases to Trier or Metz in the morning, and returning in the evening. The Second Gruppe continued training at Mont de Marsan. The Third Gruppe remained on Nancy-Essey, and was scrambled a few times. Contact was not sought with the enemy.
......On 4 June the Allied air forces kept up a blizzard of attacks on tactical objectives in France. In England, the assault craft had been loaded and were on their way to the Normandy beaches when an urgent message from SHAEF was received postponing the D-Day landings one day, from 5 June to 6 June, to take advantage of a predicted improvement in the weather. The convoys put back into port, still unobserved by the Luftwaffe.
Jagdgeschwader 26 got word of the Normandy invasion via a telephone call to Obstlt. Priller at his Lille-Nord command post. Priller was told that JG 26 had been put under the command of the 5th Jagddivision, and that he should begin transferring his Gruppen to bases nearer to the beachhead area. Orders were quickly passed to the nearby First Gruppe and to the Third Gruppe at Nancy-Essey to get their operational fighters airborne and en route to the JG 2 airfields at Creil and Cormeilles. His staff was told to load their trucks and head south toward Poix. The First and Third Gruppe truck convoys were already on the road with those units' ground staffs, but were unfortunately headed in the wrong direction. The First was going to Reims in anticipation of a permanent base move; the Third was moving southeast to join its flying units at Nancy. Priller had fought the orders for these transfers into the French interior, but had lost. The convoys were located by radio and told to stop. Hptm. Naumann's Second Gruppe pilots had already taken off from Mont de Marsan and Biarritz at 0700 and had reached Vrox, where they awaited further orders. Beyond telling the Second Gruppe ground staff to pack up, Priller had no orders at the moment; the unexpected Allied landing site had upset all the Luftwaffe plans. Having done all he could, Priller and his wingman, Uffz. Heinz Wodarczyk, headed for their Focke-Wulfs, which as usual were parked just outside the command post. The first Luftwaffe response to the invasion was underway.
......The pair took off into the gray skies at 0800. Priller's only orders to Wodarczyk were to stick close. They headed west at low altitude, spotting Spitfires above them as far east as Abbeville. Near Le Havre the duo climbed into the solid cloud bank. When they emerged, the ships of the largest assault landing in history were spread before their eyes. After a shouted "Good luck!" to Wodarczyk, Priller dove for the beach at 650 kph (400 mph). The British soldiers on Sword, the easternmost of the five landing beaches, jumped for cover as the two fighters roared overhead at fifty feet, their machine guns and cannon clattering. The fleet's antiaircraft guns opened fire with every gun that could track them, but the Focke-Wulfs flew through the barrage unscathed. After traversing the beach, the two pilots climbed for the clouds, honor satisfied. Their D-Day mission, the most famous in the history of the Geschwader thanks to Cornelius Ryan's book The Longest Day and the resulting movie, was over.
......The two Focke-Wulfs landed on Creil, and Priller went to see Major Bühligen, the Kommodore of the Richthofen Geschwader. Bühligen had no more fighters than did Priller. Only one of his Gruppen was immediately available; another was en route from Brittany, and the third was in Germany for rebuilding, and had not yet been released to return to France. After several telephone calls to 5th Jagddivision headquarters, Priller got a decision on relocating his Geschwader. The Second Gruppe could continue north to Guyancourt, near Paris. The First and Third Gruppen could stay at Creil and Cormeilles until the arrival of the rest of the JG 2 aircraft made things too crowded, and would then move south to bases in the Paris region. Priller made arrangements for Bühligen's radiomen to contact his four road convoys, and returned to the business of fighting the Allies.
......Although Priller and Wodarczyk may have been the first German pilots to fly over the beachhead, they were by no means the only ones to contact the enemy on this day. Bühligen himself scored the first victory for JG 2, a P-47 over the Orne Estuary, at 1157. I/JG 2 was active over Caen from noon, and III/JG 2 joined in after it arrived at Cormeilles from Brittany. For the day, the Richthofen Geschwader claimed three P-47s, five P-51s, and nine Typhoons, for the loss of nine Fw 190s. The P-51s included an entire flight of four 4th Fighter Group aircraft, bounced while strafing a convoy near Rouen.
......After sitting on the ground at Creil and Cormeilles for three hours waiting to be serviced, the First Gruppe began flying small missions, some jointly with I/JG 2. Uffz. Hans-Werner Winter of the 3rd Staffel either got lost or was chased east by Allied fighters, and was shot down and killed by the Abbeville Flak. Fhr. Gerhard Schulwitz was missing for a day after being shot down by naval gunfire, but returned with slight injuries. Fhj.-Uffz. Friedrich Schneider of the 2nd Staffel was also hit by naval gunners, and belly-landed on Beaumont-le-Roger. By late afternoon, the JG 2 armorers had fit some of the Focke-Wulfs with launchers for 21 cm rockets, and Lt. Kemethmüller led his 4th Staffel in the first rocket attack by the Geschwader on land targets; they had been trained for this at Cazaux. The 2nd Staffel leader, Oblt. Kunz, scored the day's only air victory for the Geschwader, downing a Mustang southeast of Caen at 2055. This was probably a 4th Fighter Group P-51 that had aborted from a mission to Dreux with a bad magneto and was attempting to reach the Allied lines to force-land.
......The Third Gruppe had reached the JG 2 bases by 0930, but did not begin flying combat missions until nearly noon. It is known that they tangled with Spitfires, claimed no victories, and sustained no losses or damage. The fragile Messerschmitts probably stayed well away from the beachhead.
......The Second Gruppe lost one aircraft on its takeoff from Biarritz. Lt. Hans Bleich was caught in Lt. Glunz's propwash and crashed, suffering slight injuries. Those Focke-Wulfs that reached Vrox flew north in two separate formations. One flew directly to the new Second Gruppe base at Guyancourt, where they landed before 1115. They did not fly again this day, probably because there was no-one there to service the aircraft. Lt. Glunz led eight aircraft to Cormeilles. While en route, Glunz spotted a flight of P-51s attacking ground targets near Rouen and led a bounce. They were spotted, and the Mustangs broke into the attack. One pair boxed in Uffz. Erich Lindner and shot him down. He attempted to bail out, but caught his parachute on the cockpit framing; he pulled it loose in time and fell free, landing with only slight injuries. Glunz holed one Mustang's wing, but was unable to get an advantage, and both sides broke away. After servicing at Cormeilles, Glunz's group reached Guyancourt by 1700.
......The OKL in Berlin believed at first that the Normandy landings were only a diversion, and did not order the fighters in Germany westward until afternoon. The Bf 109s and Fw 190s began arriving at their assigned bases near nightfall, and none played any role in the day's operations. The effort by the 5th Jagddivision totaled 121 combat sorties, all by JG 2 and JG 26. Fliegerkorps II reported fifty-one sorties, all by SG 4. According to one source, the 8th Air Force and the Allied Expeditionary Air Force (AEAF) flew 14,000 combat sorties on 6 June; the American 56th Fighter Group flew an unprecedented eleven combat missions.
Erich
the old Sage
indeed June 6th was a busy day.
17 kills claimed by JG 2 and 1 by 2./JG 26 by Oblt. Franz Kunz agasint a P-51 at UN 5: 800metres, 5km S.E. of Caen at 20.55hrs.
Hauptman Mihlan also shot dow a P-51 south of La Bazoge at 500 metres west of Mortain. He was flying in Stab III./SG 4.
12 B-24's were claimed by JG 301, 6./JG 51 and members of JG 53 in the S.E. part of Europe / Rumania, near the Ploesti oil fields..
June 7th over Normandie was an incredibly active day as it appears the Luftwaffe had a chance to "wake up". claims for 50 Allied fighters alone...
E ~
17 kills claimed by JG 2 and 1 by 2./JG 26 by Oblt. Franz Kunz agasint a P-51 at UN 5: 800metres, 5km S.E. of Caen at 20.55hrs.
Hauptman Mihlan also shot dow a P-51 south of La Bazoge at 500 metres west of Mortain. He was flying in Stab III./SG 4.
12 B-24's were claimed by JG 301, 6./JG 51 and members of JG 53 in the S.E. part of Europe / Rumania, near the Ploesti oil fields..
June 7th over Normandie was an incredibly active day as it appears the Luftwaffe had a chance to "wake up". claims for 50 Allied fighters alone...
E ~
lesofprimus
Brigadier General
Excellent info. I knew there was more to it that just Pips little run down the beach.. Thx..
I think Pips run down the beach was just the only aircraft that actually flew down the beach head.
lesofprimus
Brigadier General
There were a couple guys that got shot down by the shipboard AA fire, but im pretty sure ur right adler, it was the only strafe run down the beach head..
the lancaster kicks ass
Major General
- 19,937
- Dec 20, 2003
for all the good he did, but atleast he tried and i can imagine how much scarier it'd make it to be shot at from above......
Imagine being shotdown over the beach head and landing in the whole rain of bullets and all.
the lancaster kicks ass
Major General
- 19,937
- Dec 20, 2003
nice to take cover behind though, priller would proberly end up getting shot though........
Erich
the old Sage
just to add this tidbit. As on the 6th of June the Jagdgeschwaders were in the state of moving from one airfield to another. prime for the Allies no doubt as resistance by the Luftwaffe was ever so slight. Again that was to change as many fighter duels raged over the bocage country and inland some at very low altitude....during June-August of 44.
for 9th of June there were no aerial combat claims by the Luftwaffe over Normandie as the focus was on heavy B-24 formations by the US 15th AF attacking München. 16 were shot down with another 12 shot out of formation. A big day for Bf 109G-6 equipped I./JG 302, JG 77, JG 4 and JG 53.
10th of June a different scene aappeared over Normandie as the Luftwaffe arose to defend it's territory over Normandie. 5 kills to Ffw 190A-8 equipped III./JG 54. Addi glunz while in 6./JG 26 shot down 3 P-47's in the area of Lisieux at 2500-4000metres.....
Ploesti was also attacked and JG 77 arose to meet the 15th AF
for 9th of June there were no aerial combat claims by the Luftwaffe over Normandie as the focus was on heavy B-24 formations by the US 15th AF attacking München. 16 were shot down with another 12 shot out of formation. A big day for Bf 109G-6 equipped I./JG 302, JG 77, JG 4 and JG 53.
10th of June a different scene aappeared over Normandie as the Luftwaffe arose to defend it's territory over Normandie. 5 kills to Ffw 190A-8 equipped III./JG 54. Addi glunz while in 6./JG 26 shot down 3 P-47's in the area of Lisieux at 2500-4000metres.....
Ploesti was also attacked and JG 77 arose to meet the 15th AF
I have found a lot of info about aerial encounters like this through books and on the net but what I want to know Erich is where you get this info on particular days like you have. It is really good stuff.
CharlesBronson
Senior Master Sergeant
Tactical trials:
FW-190A-4 vs P-47C
FW-190A-4 vs P-47C
Good find there.
CharlesBronson
Senior Master Sergeant
One of the first sturmbock used by Major Dahl:
He gained his 128th and last victory, a USAAF P-51 Mustang near Dillingen, on 26 April 1945. Walter Dahl survived the war but died on 25 November 1985 at Heidelberg, aged 69.
Walter Dahl shot down 128 enemy aircraft in 678 missions, including about 300 ground-attack missions. He claimed 30, possibly 36, four-engined bombers and 34 Il-2 Stormovik ground attack aircraft. Dahl also achieved 2, possibly as many as 9 victories, flying the Me-262. He recorded 84 victories over the Eastern Front.
He gained his 128th and last victory, a USAAF P-51 Mustang near Dillingen, on 26 April 1945. Walter Dahl survived the war but died on 25 November 1985 at Heidelberg, aged 69.
Walter Dahl shot down 128 enemy aircraft in 678 missions, including about 300 ground-attack missions. He claimed 30, possibly 36, four-engined bombers and 34 Il-2 Stormovik ground attack aircraft. Dahl also achieved 2, possibly as many as 9 victories, flying the Me-262. He recorded 84 victories over the Eastern Front.
Erich
the old Sage
friend actually this is not Dahl's SturmFw. this is a machine, maybe Staffelkäpitan of 11.Sturm/JG 3 during July of 44. The 13 is actually black.
Dahl's yes would of had a blue 13 but the rumpfband would of been red not white and also without the IV.thr gruppe ~ marking. Soince he was Kommodore of JG 300 there would of been no marking over the defence Reich red band. Dahl's victories of been under scrutiny for years and indeed becasue of his high standing position could easily of claimed other pilots victories of his Stab or claimed without his wingman present.
Adler answering your June 10th posting yes much reading and interviewing veterans plus having the oppourtunity to check on US bomb group histories through the bomb group representatives and of course the overseas research contacts for many years, before NAM and after, comparing notes and finding what actually happened and not depending solely on old books for the information. The result of tedious effort, some of it painful and unfulfilling but at least the last 7-9 years with the net available more and more of those hard efforts can be gleaned in a much easier fashion, none of this wait 6 months for a reply or unanswered phone calls. there is still much being uncovered, and to stick with Charles posting waiting for the volume 1 of JG 300 to be available...sometime in august last I heard. the French version is out and is doing well. Dahl's SturmFw's and A-8's will be in the two volumes.
Erich
Dahl's yes would of had a blue 13 but the rumpfband would of been red not white and also without the IV.thr gruppe ~ marking. Soince he was Kommodore of JG 300 there would of been no marking over the defence Reich red band. Dahl's victories of been under scrutiny for years and indeed becasue of his high standing position could easily of claimed other pilots victories of his Stab or claimed without his wingman present.
Adler answering your June 10th posting yes much reading and interviewing veterans plus having the oppourtunity to check on US bomb group histories through the bomb group representatives and of course the overseas research contacts for many years, before NAM and after, comparing notes and finding what actually happened and not depending solely on old books for the information. The result of tedious effort, some of it painful and unfulfilling but at least the last 7-9 years with the net available more and more of those hard efforts can be gleaned in a much easier fashion, none of this wait 6 months for a reply or unanswered phone calls. there is still much being uncovered, and to stick with Charles posting waiting for the volume 1 of JG 300 to be available...sometime in august last I heard. the French version is out and is doing well. Dahl's SturmFw's and A-8's will be in the two volumes.
Erich
